Transformers: Warhead
by Vaikyuko
Summary: An original piece of fiction, portraying the war between the Autobots and Decepticons in a new light, beginning on Cybertron. Note: has an internal canon, but does not link directly to any other Transformers series.
1. Chapter 1

**Transformers: Warhead**

**Cycle 01**

In the dark recesses of a jungle of wires, Soundwave waited. As a loyal Tyrannicon, it was his duty to his master. To the only master he had and would ever have. And so he waited. He had but one task and he would see it to completion, even if it cost him his spark. The ultimate price was a small one to pay to ensure a victory for the true descendants of the mighty Decepticons. Only the soft glow of his photoreceptors might have betrayed him to the waiting Autobots, but even had they discovered him, he would have transformed to his alternate mode and escaped into the guts of Iacon long before they became able to locate him. The hydraulics of a nearby door hissed, and he stiffened, dimming his personal lighting to barely luminescent levels.

"Sentinel, you are an old fool. We would do well to ally again, not blunder around in the slag heaps throwing cadets at one another," said the first Transformer to enter. Soundwave recognized him instantly: any Tyrannicon or Decepticon who did not would be a foolhardy one indeed, for this was Megatronus Prime, the commander of all Decepticons, and once the mentor of his own master. He was also the only Decepticon to have ever achieved the coveted rank of Prime, fusing the power of the Matrix of Leadership to his own spark for a time. Megatronus settled into the room, his angular structure tall and foreboding; the Decepticon had long commanded great respect based on his physical size and power alone, his chassis painted a deep coal black.

"And how else will they learn? You and I may be Primes, yes, but those who would come after us are barely worthy of commanding their own troops, let alone being given the rank of Prime," the second Transformer said. Soundwave recognized this one as well, a rill of anger running through his servos. This was Sentinel Prime, the counterpart to Megatronus, leader of the Autobot faction on Cybertron.

He had also been the one who removed Soundwave from duty, declaring him "unfit for combat" despite the once-Decepticon being more than adequate. It was only due to his new allegiance that he still found himself in service. Soundwave began recording the conversation, tapping a sequence into a panel inset into his arm. A miniaturized cassette reel began rolling in his chest.

"So you think it wise training, then? Megatron versus Optimus?" Megatronus remarked, settling into a seat at the long table in the room. It was no doubt a conference room but Soundwave had paid little attention to the details. He was simply to wait and record. An ideal task.

Sentinel's body hissed as he sat down, and Megatronus stifled a laugh. "Don't snicker at me just because I'm older, Decepticon. Being an Autobot doesn't mean I'm unarmed or weak," he said, stabbing a finger in the air at Megatronus.

"Suggesting otherwise is hardly my intention, Sentinel. Now then, regarding our proteges...What would you have me do if you want them to duel? We have to orchestrate it such there will be no danger to the populace, or Iacon itself. You remember how hotheaded you were before you became a Prime, yes?" Megatronus said.

Sentinel coughed. "Irrelevant. They know the stakes and understand civilians are not to be harmed. Let them play at commander for a while, until the time comes. You're sure it's on its way?" he asked. Soundwave leaned closer, unsure to what Sentinel referred.

Megatronus's face turned grave. "Yes. It'll be here in less than a hundred megacycles. Ultra Magnus, despite my insistence, refuses to make any evacuation plans for himself. We may lose him if we have to evacuate Cybertron itself," he said, rubbing his spindly fingers together.

"The fool," Sentinel said simply. Megatronus paused, extending a few fingers before withdrawing them. Sentinel looked down at himself, his blunt fingers tracing the Autobot sigil on his chest. The moment was lost on Soundwave, who lacked many finer emotions. His reel continued spinning, recording even the momentary silence. His commander would hear everything and discern what was useful for himself. It was not for Soundwave to judge.

"Magnus would be a good choice to govern the skirmish between the would-be Primes, yes?" Megatronus asked, drumming his fingers on his other hand. Sentinel nodded. "Good, then we're agreed. He shall be an impartial judge and determine for us when they achieve the proper status...or if they do at all," Megatronus finished.

Sentinel scoffed. "You would like to keep your position lofty, no doubt. You'll be kicked out of the club eventually, you know."

"As will you, old friend. Go on, I shall stay a while longer."

Sentinel eyed Megatronus for a moment, and then raised his rust red body up from his chair, leaving the room. The sound of screeching tires was heard after the door closed, suggesting the Prime had switched to his vehicular alternate mode.

"Hotheaded even now, yes..." Megatronus remarked. "How long will you stay quiet, Soundwave?" he asked, looking directly to where the Tyrannicon lay hidden. "Come now. I will not harm or punish you for your eavesdropping."

Soundwave reluctantly parted the wires in the access duct in which he lurked, clambering out carefully into the main portion of the conference hall. As he stood in front of Megatronus, the smaller Transformer felt uneasy; Primes held the power to destroy virtually any other Cybertronian and could exercise it virtually at will with the slightest justification. Soundwave himself was also physically dwarfed by Megatronus, being at least two or three meters shorter, a great deal slimmer, and clearly designed for a compact alternate form as opposed to the gargantuan vehicle he had yet to see Megatronus become. Their paired colors were identical, however, Soundwave having once idolized Megatronus as much as he now worshipped his master.

"Well, then? For whom were you recording the conversation? I've no doubt you heard everything but there was little to learn," Megatronus said, examining some of his fingers. He leaned down to Soundwave, his communications crest almost brushing the smaller Transformer's smooth faceplate. "Well?"

"This unit was recording for the purposes of espionage on behalf of Lord Megatron," Soundwave said, his voice distorted and highly synthesized to prevent voice recognition, an old spy trick he refused to ever stop using.

"Ah. So my apprentice learns of deception from me and applies it in turn to his followers. Clever, if misguided an effort. He needed but to ask. A proper Decepticon leader keeps only the most important secrets to himself, and disseminates the rest alongside rumors and falsehoods, Soundwave." The Tyrannicon merely quirked its head to the side, not comprehending.

Megatronus rubbed his crest with one hand, sighing. "Tell Megatron this, or - are you recording? I'll just say it, then. A transwarp wave of unprecedented magnitude is approaching Cybertron. We've yet to ascertain its origin, but it's potentially from an explosion billions of years old. It's not like a typical transwarp wave which would do little but perhaps teleport us to Chaon from Iacon or somesuch. No, this could potentially destroy Cybertron. I seek to evacuate, and Sentinel seeks the same, but...he is a fool. He wants to wait longer. The longer we wait, the less chance we have of escaping Cybertron alive and unharmed. The wave will crush the planet, of that I have no doubt, but I fear it is merely a harbinger of something far worse coming in its wake," the Prime finished. Soundwave bleeped an affirmative as the reel in his chest clicked repeatedly to indicate it was full. Megatronus looked faintly amused.

"Will you need transport, Soundwave? Or is your alternate mode capable of high speed transit?"

"This unit is capable of high speed aerial maneuvers. It shall return to Lord Megatron," Soundwave said, snapping its arm to its chest in a salute. Megatronus waved him off, and a second later with the telltale sound of transformation, an aerial reconnaissance vehicle zoomed out the door and down the halls.

"Primus help us all if that wave really does hit...and failing that, I pray we don't all go to the Pit." Megatronus shook his head, and began trudging out of the room, his large frame bending to exit the room.

"Give it up, Megatron! You know I'm not going to!" Optimus cried, sparks erupting from the clash of blades between the would-be Primes. Megatron's silver-gray chassis shone in the light of the arena, and the Decepticon grinned savagely.

"You'd be hard pressed to find someone harder to convince, Optimus!" he replied, throwing the Autobot back with a flourish of his blade. Megatron lunged at his opponent again, kicking up the rust of the arena floor up behind him. "If I'm to be a leader of the Decepticons, I can't be going easy on my opponents, especially not any Autobots!"

Optimus slid to the right, kicking Megatron in the back and rolling forward as he did so. Megatron reeled and stumbled forward, planting his blade in the ground and pivoting to face Optimus once again.

"Clever, but such maneuvers do not save you from -" he paused, lowering his blade. Optimus gave him a look.

"I call for a cessation of our duel, Optimus. I have urgent business to attend to," Megatron said, his deep purple eyes searching the sky.

Optimus shrugged, stretching his shoulder servos. "If you wanna concede, that's up to you." He grinned.

"Very well. I shall see you next cycle at the earliest," Megatron replied absentmindedly, transforming into his VTOL alternate mode. He flew up and out of the arena, and left the red and blue Autobot standing alone. Megatron waited only a few moments for Optimus to trudge away disappointed, and then landed on the rim of the arena, returning to his robot form.

Soundwave swooped in, transforming in midair and landing heavily in a kneeling position in front of Megatron. "My task is complete, Lord Megatron," the spy said with his usual distorted lilt.

"Speak," Megatron waved. He paused to examine his clawed fingers as he waited for Soundwave to reel back the tape in his chest. A moment later the dialogue between the Primes played out, including the lengthy information dump Megatronus had given. Megatron tapped his chin, the soft tinking noise echoing. "Interesting indeed. So few cycles to work. I shall have to accelerate my plans. Soundwave!"

"Yes, Lord Megatron?"

"Call back Starscream and Thundercracker to the capital. The three of you will perform your assigned group duty soon indeed. We will need to leave Cybertron to find a proper storehouse of Energon. I will have no one plunder my planet while I am away, so inform Rampage he may begin his work too," Megatron said.

"As Lord Megatron commands, thy will be done." Soundwave turned, but Megatron grabbed his shoulder.

"One more thing. Stealth and subtlety are still key. The Autobots and Decepticons alike must not know of the Tyrannicons until we take the Nemesis. Once we have it, all Cybertron will know...and we will take those loyal to our cause and leave. As such, court no one until I give you the command to do so."

"Yes, Lord Megatron. Thy will be done." Soundwave leaped into the air and transformed, speeding off to do his master's bidding. Megatron turned back to catch the smallest glimpse of Optimus before he left the arena, and a frown crossed his face.

"I can only hope some are bright enough to see the light of reason. It would burn my spark to have to put down friends for the better of Cybertron."


	2. Chapter 2

**Cycle 02**

Optimus examined the front windows of his alternate form, which conveniently found themselves on his chestplate when in robot form. During his duel with Megatron, he had scuffed one of the windows, and he sighed. "Gonna cost a fortune to get that fixed," he muttered to himself, trudging the halls toward the arena exit.

The red and blue Autobot paused when he heard the sounds of an argument coming from one of the adjoining rooms, and he walked toward the noise, trying to remain stealthy.

"And what, you're saying you can't do it?" The voice was female, indignant, and somehow familiar to Optimus, though he couldn't say where he'd heard it before.

"For Primus's sake, no, I can't! How many times do I have to say that?" came the other voice. Male, gruff, even a little phlegmy as though the other Transformer had something in his voicebox. Optimus strode into the room and stopped the conversation instantly. It was a lounge, complete with a few rest stations, but the two Transformers drew the Autobot's eye. The gruff voice was a large emergency vehicle-based male, presumably an Autobot though he couldn't be sure. The female was all too familiar to him, by contrast. A lithe motorcycle-alt Transformer, she had long plagued his school days and been quite the nuisance.

"Arcee."

"Optimus," she replied coolly. The third unit looked from one to the other, shaking his head.

"Is this guy bothering you? What's the problem?" Optimus said, trying to sound officious.

Arcee laughed. "You're kidding, right? _Ratchet_? He couldn't harm a fly even if he wanted to!"

The emergency vehicle unit crossed his arms and grumbled. "Like hell, kid. I could kick your skidplate from here to Quintesson. Don't screw with me."

"Fair enough," Arcee said, holding up her hands. "Anyway, Optimus, as you can see, we're not in any trouble. I was actually asking Ratchet to help me, believe it or not."

Optimus shifted. "It sounded like you two were arguing."

"Because this idiot wants me to overcharge her cylinders just to get faster! Like going somewhere faster is a good idea. Get an aerial alternate mode if you wanna be a speed demon!" Ratchet said, stabbing a finger at Arcee. She put her hands on her hip plates, raising her brow at the older Autobot.

Optimus looked at her again, and startled himself as he realized he was admiring her chassis without realizing. "Well, if that's the case, you don't need me around to bother you," Optimus said, turning to leave.

"Optimus!" Arcee called when he reached the door. He turned. "Look, uh. I know we've had our differences, but what say you and I go to grab some Energon later? My treat." He paused, mulling it over.

"Alright. We'll do that. Let me know within a few cycles," he replied.

Optimus walked out as Arcee turned back to Ratchet, and he smirked as she asked Ratchet what he thought was so funny. Same old clueless Arcee. A few moments later he found himself outside, looking up to the starry darkened sky of Cybertron. Something big was rumbling and he couldn't figure out what. He felt as if everything was building, but to what he couldn't figure out. Megatron, Arcee, even the Primes, everyone seemed to know something that he didn't and planned accordingly. Optimus sighed as he sat there. He rubbed the scratch in his chestplate again absentmindedly, still looking to the sky when he saw the reddish flares of a malfunctioning engine. He focused, trying to zoom, but it was pointless; even with his IR filter he couldn't make out whatever it was. He transformed into his alternate mode, a heavy Cybertronian transport, and began driving forward, keeping to the mainline roads and focusing one of his small microcameras on his exterior hull on the object. Whatever it was, it might need help. After a few minutes of trailing the object, he finally managed to get a clear view of it; it was a teal and gray aerial vehicle, probably a jet from the looks of it, listing to one side and leaking Energon out of one of the sides, suggesting damage.

"Whatcha chasin', bossbot?" a familiar voice called from behind him. Optimus inwardly groaned as Arcee's motorcycle form sped up next to him to fall in line.

"There's a jet up there, I think he's in trouble."

"Playing hero, eh?"

"No, doing a civic duty. Something you could learn about. Life isn't all going fast and kicking skidplate," he said.

Arcee lapsed into silence, dimming her headlights a bit, and Optimus wondered if he had upset her. A moment later she laughed. "Eh, without me you're hopeless anyway, Prime candidate or not! So I'll come along. Hey, maybe we'll meet somebody new and fun, right?"

"This is to help him, not make friends," Optimus grunted, and he sped up a little bit. Arcee matched his pace effortlessly as the jet finally near-smashed into the ground, skidding off the metallic composition of the planet before the Transformer changed into an alternate form, rolling a bit further before he finally stopped, smashed into a heap. The paired Autobots arrived a moment later, snapping into robot form to look at the crashed jet.

"Ugh...Unicron's blasters, that hurt worse than a scrap at Junkheap Alley," the newcomer muttered, rubbing the prominent cockpit window serving as his chestplate. As he stood, he brushed himself off, and Optimus watched as some of the tarnished spots were rubbed clean, revealing prominent Decepticon emblems. Optimus narrowed his photoreceptors upon examining the primary emblem at his shoulder; it looked different from the traditional Decepticon emblem, with a dark red hue rather than purple, and a communications spike emanating from the forehead of the depicted Decepticon face. He'd never seen such a symbol before.

The Decepticon noticed the other two at last, casually shifting position so the emblem was obscured by his other arm. "So. Hiya folks. Name's Thundercracker. What's your pleasure?"

The two Autobots looked to one another, bewildered. Arcee stepped forward. "Big bot here wanted to check on you. Saw your engine flare and I'd be surprised if anybody who saw you could miss that Energon leak, you've got a hefty one in your fuselage somewhere," she said.

"Eh? I was leaking? Slag! Repairman was a lying thief like I thought. If I transform, you mind pointing it out for me?" Thundercracker asked sweetly. Optimus nodded before Arcee could respond, and she gave him a look.

Thundercracker transformed back to his vehicle mode, and Optimus was treated to a fuller shot of the red Decepticon emblem, painted proudly on either wing of Thundercracker's body. The damage was plainly visible, a scoring of the metal on his right engine. Optimus indicated the problem.

"Scrap, I figured it was something like that. Must've been when that slaggin'...never mind. Either of you got any spare Energon cubes on you? I've got to get to Autobot City, I can get repaired by some friends of mine. Got an urgent appointment there anyway," he said, transforming back into robot form with a wince. Arcee shook her head, but Optimus knelt down, tapping a sequence into the side of his leg. A compartment opened and he passed the two shining Energon cubes inside to Thundercracker, closing the panel without a word.

"You're aces, kid. Hey, what's your name?"

"My name is Optimus, and this is Arcee."

Thundercracker's balance shifted, and he glanced at Optimus again, more measured. "Optimus, you say? Hm. Alright, look, as a favor to you for helping me out so much, I'm gonna let you in on a little something. Stay out of Autobot City tomorrow. Just...trust me on that."

"Why?" Optimus asked, Arcee crossing her arms.

"Look, I can't really talk about it. Mission orders. Stuff like that. Kind of important, boss is a spoilsport, blah blah. You spark me?" Thundercracker said.

"Why is your emblem different from that of the conventional Decepticon forces? Are you a member of their special operating squadrons?" Optimus asked. Arcee looked up at him, blinking; evidently she was not aware of the existence of such a squadron, but Optimus pressed on. "I've never seen the sigil before, even among Megatronus Prime's closest acolytes."

Thundercracker looked startled, then relaxed. "It's, yeah, it's a special squad thing. Kind of secret, hush hush, don't talk it up, alright?" He looked satisfied with himself, though for what, Optimus couldn't tell.

"Very well. I understand your need for secrecy, though I feel it would be better if Decepticons and Autobots absolved their boundaries and became more united."

"Heh. Kiddo, that's a great slaggin' idea. Never will work, but it's nice to think about," Thundercracker said with a sad smile. He opened his spark cavity, then turned as if embarrassed, placing the Energon cubes inside his engine. "Thanks for the help, Optimus. I appreciate it. I mean it, though...you wanna stay out of Autobot City tomorrow. Your lady friend too," he said, turning back.

Arcee looked insulted. "I am not his lady friend! I could beat him up anytime, in fact!" Thundercracker burst out laughing, clapping a hand on Optimus's shoulder as he doubled over.

"You kids. What a riot. Keep it sparkin'!" he said, and with that, he transformed and burst into the sky with a bright flare of flame from his engines.

Arcee turned to Optimus. "What was he talking about? And there's special Decepticon squadrons? What do they do?"

"I fear I do not know of what he spoke. And to be honest, I know little of the special squadrons. I know only that they exist outside the normal command and answer only to Primes."

"Only to Primes, huh? Sounds interesting."

Optimus looked toward the horizon, where the sun was distantly rising over Autobot City. "I fear there may be more trouble brewing than even Sentinel could handle...and I think I need to go back. Please...don't follow me this time, Arcee." Without another word, Optimus transformed and began driving straight toward the city, leaving Arcee standing alone on the Cybertronian plain.

"Like I'm going to let you keep me out of this, bossbot," she said, transforming and following him.


End file.
